Those within the ranks of jujutsu sorcerers would not easily allow a Special Grade Sorcerer outside their surveillance to act freely.
So if Chingetsu chose not to join Jujutsu High, he could easily become a thorn in their side.
Masamichi Yaga had almost grown numb to the filthy things those higher-ups did to maintain their so-called orthodoxy and authority.
So his suggestion that Chingetsu join Jujutsu High was not merely out of appreciation for his talent. More than that, it was about...
Protection.
"Chingetsu, I hope you'll give this some serious thought." Masamichi Yaga looked straight into Chingetsu's unruffled eyes.
"Because only by joining Jujutsu High can you grow safely." Masamichi Yaga's tone grew somewhat dispirited.
"This world isn't that wonderful. The greatest enemies of jujutsu sorcerers have never been cursed spirits." "They're those so-called..."
"Guardians of orthodoxy..."
Chapter 39: The second Stand, [Bites the Dust], unlocked!
Orthodoxy.
When he said that word, undisguised disgust appeared on Masamichi Yaga's face. That so-called orthodoxy...
Was nothing more than a pretext those higher-ups had fabricated to maintain their own positions. However...
With Jujutsu Society in its current state, only by submitting to that so-called orthodoxy could one secure some room to survive. Masamichi Yaga himself loathed this deeply.
But...
If that orthodoxy did not accept him...
What Chingetsu faced might be the malice of the entire Jujutsu Society.
That was also why so many jujutsu sorcerers chose to become curse users. Sometimes, they did not want to become curse users.
Rather, Jujutsu Society's rotten system and underhanded tricks forced some people to live in the gray areas.
So, faced with a gifted boy like Chingetsu...
Masamichi Yaga was utterly unwilling to see him suppressed by the higher-ups and ultimately become a curse user who could not live in the light.
"Orthodoxy?"
As though he had not seen the expression on Masamichi Yaga's face, Chingetsu gave a disdainful scoff. "What the hell is that?"
What the hell was that?
The expression on Masamichi Yaga's face abruptly froze.
He had not expected Chingetsu to make no attempt to conceal his contempt for orthodoxy.
But that contempt was not ignorance. It was this boy's bone-deep disdain for so-called authority. He was like an eagle soaring high in the heavens, looking down at wild dogs fighting over carrion on the ground.
Perhaps, in this boy's eyes, the orthodoxy others had always pursued was merely carrion in a wild dog's jaws. For a moment, Chingetsu's image seemed to overlap with Satoru Gojo's.
Masamichi Yaga sensed the same untamed arrogance of genius in both of them. Perhaps...
He really was getting old.
Masamichi Yaga opened his mouth, but in the end, nothing came out. Utahime Iori saw all of his embarrassment.
She had never expected the usually stern Yaga to see a day when someone left him speechless. Utahime Iori instinctively wanted to argue back, only to discover that she could not get a word in.
Looking at the silent Masamichi Yaga, Chingetsu's lips curled into a mocking smile. "So-called orthodoxy is nothing but a facade erected by a bunch of people who should've been in their coffins long ago. Jujutsu is the authority they've established."
"This authority has lasted for over a thousand years. Clan members who can't inherit a cursed technique are inherently inferior, and people without even cursed energy are no more than weeds in their eyes."
"Rigid thinking, refusing to accept any power outside of jujutsu, purging anyone who differs-is that your so-called orthodoxy?" Every word Chingetsu spoke was laden with mockery.
It was precisely because he could not stand that so-called orthodoxy that he had left the Gojo Clan.
In the eyes of those hidebound old fools, any power outside of jujutsu was a pile of dog shit. Even when people possessed powers ordinary people lacked, they were still only human.
Chingetsu had seen through that long ago.
"So I won't submit to the orthodoxy they've dictated."
"Their orthodoxy is nothing but a facade maintained through force, because they're afraid that one day, some new orthodoxy will spring up out of nowhere and replace them."
"As long as I'm strong enough-so strong that everyone fears me..." "Then I'll be orthodoxy!"
At that point, Chingetsu's voice grew low and deep, and his previously gentle bearing instantly became razor-sharp.
"You, you..."
Masamichi Yaga was so shaken that he could not speak for a long time.
He had entertained similar thoughts himself, but never with Chingetsu's resolve. He could tell that Chingetsu was not joking.
Somehow, looking at the light in Chingetsu's eyes and his straight back...
An idea suddenly arose in Masamichi Yaga's heart that even he found absurd: one day, this boy would stand at the pinnacle of this world and show the world his edge.
"That road is a hard one."
Masamichi Yaga's throat worked with difficulty.
Facing this young boy, he actually felt a trace of the reverence one felt before a towering mountain. Chingetsu did not respond to Masamichi Yaga.
The answer to that question had ceased to matter the moment he left the Gojo Clan. Chingetsu did not want to know how difficult that road would be, either.
Because all he had wanted at first was a quiet life. This conversation with Masamichi Yaga had also brought him to a realization.
Just because he did not provoke others did not mean others would not provoke him. Greed would always be humanity's greatest original sin.
At that thought, Chingetsu's lips curved into a cold arc. If someone was foolish enough to disrupt his life...
He did not mind becoming a demon and his enemies' nightmare. If his enemies were strong...
Then he would be stronger than them. If he was not strong enough, then he would keep growing stronger. Chingetsu's thoughts instantly cleared.
A powerful confidence rose from him.
At the same time, his second Stand, [Bites the Dust], finally unlocked.
Bean
? -
Chapter 40: Gojo Chingetsu, join us!
"Are you really not going to reconsider?"
Although he already understood Chingetsu's wishes, Masamichi Yaga still clung to a thread of hope. "Gojo... Chingetsu..."
A murmur like that of a demon crawling out of hell sounded in everyone's ears, followed by a startled cry from Utahime Iori.
"Heh heh heh."
A harsh, grating laugh like a night owl's sounded from behind Utahime Iori. "Looks like we're the same kind of people, Gojo Chingetsu."
"Come on, join us."
"Let those so-called guardians of orthodoxy eat shit!" "Who's there!"
Masamichi Yaga whipped around and instantly released a palm-sized brown bear cursed corpse. The instant the brown bear cursed corpse landed, a trace of scarlet flooded its eyes.
Immediately afterward, the bear's entire body began to swell. The originally toy-sized brown bear expanded into a giant brown bear three meters tall.
Its huge paw whipped through the air and instantly swung toward the voice's owner. But the very next second, the paw stopped just above Utahime Iori's head. "Despicable!"
Looking at the person hiding behind Utahime Iori and using her as a shield, Masamichi Yaga bristled with rage. "Don't get so angry, Yaga."
"You aren't my target today."
The owner of the voice slowly stepped out from behind Utahime Iori.
"Also, don't make any rash moves. See the cursed spirit on this girl's neck?"
"This is a special cursed spirit that can conceal its cursed energy signature and its body. One command from me, and this girl is finished."
"Thanks to this cursed spirit, I got to hear such a wonderful conversation."
Masamichi Yaga looked closely. Sure enough, an extremely faint trace of unusual cursed energy was flowing around Utahime Iori's neck. It seemed the other party was telling the truth: a special cursed spirit really was lurking on Utahime Iori.
"It's you." Chingetsu recognized that face.
The man who had wrecked his tavern and injured Kento Nanami. "Yes, it's me. Still remember this face?"
Kimura €€suke's face twisted into a smile uglier than a crying expression. "I heard everything just now."
"Gojo Chingetsu, join us."
"As long as you join us, we'll wipe the slate clean." "Even though you killed Hannya."
At that point, a trace of venomous resentment flashed through Kimura €€suke's eyes.
Hannya, whom he had spent countless painstaking efforts cultivating, had ultimately been utterly erased by Chingetsu, and even the Special Grade Cursed Object inside Hannya had ended up in Chingetsu's possession.
That hatred was no less intense than the fury he had felt when Chingetsu brutally killed his duplicate. However, Kimura €€suke quickly suppressed it.
Compared with a duplicate and the already dead Hannya...
Winning over Gojo Chingetsu, who harbored deep misgivings about jujutsu sorcerers as a group, was what he most needed to do right now. He still understood the principle of cutting his losses in time.
Before you continue